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Q&A with Mike Edwards

PROFESSIONAL BOWLING: Mike Edwards sends ball down the lane at Heritage Lanes in preparation for this weekend's Oklahoma City PBA Open tournament. Staff photo by Doug Hoke.

t when I got out there, I realized I needed to learn some more. I had sponsors — I wasn’t just starving or anything — but yeah, $800 doesn’t go too far.

JC: The winnings increased pretty dramatically over the next few years. What changed?

ME: Basically, working on adapting quicker to the lane conditions. There’s a certain amount of oil on the lanes, and when a ball rolls down the lane, it picks the oil up and causes the ball to do certain things. After so many games and so many players on certain lanes, you’re going to have to make adjustments with your feet and with your ball speed and with your angle. I just wasn’t doing that. I didn’t know how to do that. That’s what I really worked on.

JC: Does it ever seem like you get to do for a living what most people do for fun?

ME: Obviously, I’ve been out here awhile, and people say, "Do you still love it?” I still love it. It’s still a game. That’s what it always has been. There’s some guys out here that believe they’re above everything by doing this, but it’s a game to me. The fun is still there.

Want to know how Mike Edwards prepares for the rigors of the bowling season? The only American Indian on the PBA tour talks about that on my blog at NewsOK.com.

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